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Blue Jays Minor League Musings: JoJo Parker and Willie MacIver have multi-homer games
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Photo credit: © Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Jul 30, 2026, 15:30 EDTUpdated: Jul 30, 2026, 14:53 EDT
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For the first time in a while, the Toronto Blue Jays’ system had an organizational sweep.
Wednesday afternoon saw the big league club defeat the Washington Nationals by a score of 5-2. Their winning ways continued in the minor leagues, as all three teams in action picked up a victory thanks to some key performances.
Top prospect JoJo Parker achieved a feat he had yet to do as a professional, hitting two home runs in the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays’ 14-9 victory on Wednesday. It was his first multi-home run game as a professional, and the first one in particular was a thing of beauty, as the no doubter came off the bat at 107.8 mph. On top of the two home runs, he hit a single and walked once.
Parker was the team’s best performer, but there were other strong games as well. Jake Cook has yet to show the promise that makes him such an intriguing prospect, but he went 3-4 with three singles, two stolen bases, and two walks. You’d be hard pressed to find a better professional game from him so far.
Blaine Bullard and Juan Sanchez also had strong games, going 2-4 with two walks each. Sanchez drove in four of the 14 runs, stealing a base as well. All four of these players sat at the top of the D-Jays lineup, and all four are interesting prospects.
There were a handful of debuts as well. Brayden Martin, the Jays’ 11th rounder, went 1-3 with an RBI and two walks. Ryan Franden, a non-drafted free agent, went 0-5, as did their eighth-rounder from the 2026 draft, Jake Bennett. In fact, Bennett struck out four times, but reached after being hit by a pitch.
Of course, there were some notable performances on the mound as well. Brandon Barriera returned to a Single-A mound, but gave up five earned runs over an inning and a third. The Blue Jays’ first-rounder in 2022 just hasn’t figured it out when he’s been healthy.
Later in the game, Ricky Tiedemann came out of the bullpen, throwing seven pitches to record three outs, ending his evening with a strikeout on a high-90s fastball. The hope of Tiedemann as a starter has diminished since his season-ending injury in 2024, but there’s still plenty of upside as a reliever.
A couple of pitchers made their professional debut as well. NDFA Isaac Williams pitched a clean inning, striking out two and earning the victory. Dax Dathe, another NDFA, struck out two in a clean inning as well.
In the Vancouver Canadians’ 5-3 win over Spokane, both Gable Mitchell and Bryce Chance made their professional debuts. The former notched his first career hit, a single, in a 1-4 game. Chance went 0-3.
The catalyst for the C’s offence were Eric Snow and Peyton Williams.  Snow went 2-4 and is now batting .309 since his mid-June call-up. Williams also went 2-4, driving in two and hitting one of three doubles. Edward Duran and Alex Hernandez each one as well, driving in one and two runs respectively.
On the mound Troy Guthrie had an okay start, going five innings and giving up three earned runs. He didn’t issue any free passes, though, and struck out five in the process. Holden Wilkerson picked up the save, pitching four hitless innings with four walks and six strikeouts.
Saving the best performance for last, Willie MacIver outdid Parker and hit three home runs, his fourth, fifth, and sixth of the season. It was easily one of the best performances of the season in the organization, and he drove in four runs in the 5-4 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons’ victory.
The rehabbing Jesús Sánchez had a strong game, going 2-3 with two singles, while Eloy Jiménez went 2-5 with two doubles. Rudy Martin Jr. also had a two-hit performance, while Daz Cameron and Charles McAdoo had the other two hits.
On the mound, Lázaro Estrada had a great start, throwing four hitless innings with a walk and five strikeouts. The no-hitter was broken up in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a lead-off home run by Keaton Anthony. Pat Gallagher was tagged with two earned runs, while Javen Coleman and Tanner Andrews both gave up one run as well.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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